The chapter introduces human–computer Interaction (HCI) and HCI research and describes their current states. Challenges to HCI research are identified as the need to address the growth and diversification of HCI and of the associated research, while decreasing the fragmentation of fields and theories.The aims of the book are presented as support for researchers to build on and to validate each other’s work and so to increase consensus, leading to increased HCI discipline progress. The concepts of approach and framework are outlined, together with their relations. The chapter sets the scene for the following two chapters, which address respectively approaches and frameworks separately and in greater depth.

The chapter defines the concept of approach, along with its derivation and exemplification. A general definition of approach is proposed. The latter is then applied to HCI research in particular. An approach to HCI comprises the addressing of the topic or problem of human–computer interaction research; the performing of actions to progress the approach to the addressing of the topic or problem of human–computer interaction research; the evaluating of the success of the actions performed to progress an approach to the addressing of the topic or problem of human–computer interaction research; and the cumulating of the successes of whether the topic or problem of human–computer interaction research has been addressed or not. The definition is both explicit and sufficiently well specified for the later application of frameworks to the approaches, retained here – innovation, art, craft, applied, science and engineering.